Dubai-born MC and hip-hop artist Yassin Al Salman - or The Narcicyst, as he prefers to call himself - has now carved himself a place in the fledgling UAE film industry with a striking debut in City of Life. Although his portrayal of Khalfan - a young and restless Emirati in the film - represented the first time mainstream audiences were introduced to the Iraqi artist, the 28-year-old has been active on the Arabic hip-hop scene for a few years now. He once fronted Euphrates, a Montreal-based hip-hop band whose two albums - A Bend in the River and Stereotypes Incorporated - generated quite a bit of interest internationally, even catching the attention of Time magazine with their politically-charged lyrics. A graduate in political science and communication studies, Yassin has a Masters degree in media studies, focusing on the identity politics in hip-hop poetics, specifically encountering and dissecting the Arab-American experience through a thesis project entitled "Fear ofAn Arab Planet".
Tell us a bit about your plan to collaborate with Emirati singer and Abri frontman Hamdan Al Abri. What's it about?
Well, I've worked with Hamdan before, but not directly. My friend Amir, also known as Half Gully, produced a remix of Piece of Yourself on Abri's last album, Blank Notes.I was in the studio when he made the remix so I wrote a verse and recorded. Next thing we knew we ended up on their album.I am a huge fan of Hamdan and I've only met him a handful of times. Great dude, incredible voice. When it came down to working on my next project, I am really experimenting with sounds. I produced a really heavy beat with a full band, and it took me two months to realise whoI wanted on the record. And that's Hamdan. He sent me back his vocals. Wow!
Was your music video P.H.A.T.W.A based on a personal experience? Can you tell us a bit more about that?
It's pretty straightforward. We as Arabs faced a lot of profiling and discriminatory acts in the last couple of years. I wanted to tackle it in a way where a non-Arab/Muslim could relate. Most of what happens in the video is based on reality - so some of the ridiculous questions I get, those were real; being at the airport with that friend was real. P.H.A.T.W.A. stands for Political Hip-Hop Attracting the World's Attention or Purposeful Hatred Attacking the Wrong Arabs. You know, the paranoia, the fear of growing your beard before getting on a plane. You start questioning who's to blame for all this? That's why the video features both an American agent and an Arab one. The real-life situation is complex and confusing, so we didn't want to point fingers in one direction.
Your character Khalfan was one of the most striking characters in City of Life. How did you approach the role? Did you base it on anyone you know?
Why thank you. I got the part of Khalfan through a random e-mail/phone call from Ali Mostafa. He told me he had a role he really believed I could do justice to. So I flew out to Dubai, did a read, and I got the part! I approached the role from many different angles. I had to learn the Emirati dialect, as I am Iraqi. Khalfan is half-Iraqi, half-Emirati, so the verbal nuances were very important in translating his displacement. Then there was the physical end of things, I was working out like crazy, eating differently, doing kickboxing classes, running, and so on. I used to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day for the role, I don't smoke otherwise. Khalfan, to me, represented the Arab without privileges, the Arab that is in a jam he cannot get himself out of, a downward spiral. He metaphorically represented the struggle of Iraq and Palestine to me, trying to reach his richer counterparts but not being heard because he is surrounded by violence and poverty. Around the same time we were shooting and prepping for the film, the Gaza War happened. I watched a lot of news and channelled that frustration. I went on Youtube and watched videos of Iraqi children being taunted by American soldiers. I based Khalfan on my own frustrations and on some people in my life as well.
Is it true you grew up in Dubai? Tell us a bit about the Dubai you knew.
I was born in Dubai, but grew up in Abu Dhabi. I was born in Garhoud, and the home I was born into is now a petrol station. Abu Dhabi was great growing up, I wouldn't change it for the world. It kept us calm and I have friends there that are my friends forever. I went to high school there at AISA, then left for University in Montreal. In Dubai, I went to Al Ittihad school for the first couple years of my life until we moved to Montreal.
Will we see you at the cinemas again? Have you always had an interest in acting?
This industry is cut-throat. It has always been my dream to be an actor. City of Life was where I scratched the surface, I would love to do more and more films!
Your mode of expression - hip-hop -is gaining resonance in the Arab world, especially among younger audiences.What is the message that you want your music to get across?
I don't have a specific message. I justwant to share my experience with people and really shed light on dark spotsin history that we tend to ignore or forget. So, yes, I speak on what is going on inthe Middle East, how Iraq was destroyed, how my people are suffering, how grateful I am for life, how much I love my family, and so on. I speak about being an Arab man growing up between two sides of the world and how it split me into completion.It's a phenomenon that is very present in the world now - the nomad. So my message is that we are coming, there is no stopping us now.
Lastly, do you have a day job?
I am a musician, a sound engineer, a writer for magazines, university publications and fiction. I'm an actor! I'm a life juggler!
NAME: Yassin Al Salman
AGE: 28
NATIONALITY: Iraqi
CLAIM TO FAME: Rapper/MC, starred in City of Life
LIVES IN: Montreal
WEBSITE: www.narcy.net
- The Narcicyst album is available on iTunes or for purchase on CD at www.iraqisthebomb.com
